"Early
in 1917 I was informed by Mr J,M.Davies of the Land Settlement
Department, that at no great distance from Hiripitiya there were
some ruins of a remarkable character at a place called Arankele,
to the northward, and not far from the mountain known as
Doluwakanda." This was the first time perhaps that Arankele
figured in a public discussion. The writer raising this issue
was Frederick Lewis , attached to the Forest Department, whose
other interest was the history and culture of this island
paradise.

He was writing to the Royal Asiatic
Journal of the same year of how he visited this forest retreat
accompanied by another lover of the country’s past, Dr Andreas
Nell. Arankele is not far from Kurunegala, a turn off from a few
miles from the town on the road to Dambulla leads you to this
place which appears not to have acquired the reputation of being
worthy of a visit. If you do make the journey to this forest
monastery you are bound to be struck by its remarkable unadorned
beauty and plainness.

It has come under the active care of the
Department of Archaeology from 1922 though it has been noticed
in the Archaeological report of 1890 referring to its "wonderful
stonework" and other features such as "a tank with stone steps,"
"two roads with stone steps to the tank" and "a rock cave with
stone walls and roof" (pictures of which appear on this page.)
What caught my attention when I visited the place for the first
time a few years back was the lovely tank and the "two roads."

Of striking beauty was the roadway referred to
above. According to the survey made by the Archaeological
Department, it is about 1800 feet long and is referred to by the
people as the peth maga (foot path). No doubt it could be used
for long uninterrupted meditative walks, but its primary aim
seems to have been to link the rock caves situated higher up on
the hill and the Janthagaaraya at the lower end, which prepared
the herbal medicines for the resident monks, hot water baths and
probably any requirements of food. Jantaagaraya is the term used
to refer to this building, more popularly referred to as the
‘Unu pan geya’, literally the ‘hot water house.’ Provision has
been made for the use of 22 fireplaces here.

The peth maga is long and narrow. It is lined on
either side by remarkably smooth stonework. The peth maga’s
surface is strewn with sand, a great comfort for the feet that
tread on it. It has also over 20 culverts on its path to the
summit in order to divert the gush of water from the higher land
above during heavy rains. With the result that the peth maga
remains unruffled even in the worst weather. The culverts have
been placed in such a way that one is hardly aware of their
existence.

How far this pathway runs has not been
determined still. If we put aside the lack of funds to do these
explorations and excavations, what seems evident is that when
this pathway climbs to the top it disappears into the mists of
time amidst the rocks and jungle and numerous unexplored ruins
through which it seems to wind. But you are pleased that the
peth maga, which has brought you to the top of the hill, has
done it gently in easy stages by levelling the pathway and
reducing the gradient to almost invisibility.

It is on your way down this path that the tank
begins to reveal its beauty. It is not large as tanks go. Square
in shape, it reminds you of an oversized swimming pool. It is
larger, however, than the twin ponds in Anuradhapura, the kootam
pokunas put together, but with hardly any decorative
embellishments like liyavellas and other stone carvings. This
tank or pond serves part of the water needs of this forest
monastery, there are also wells else where..

Close to this tank are the ruins of the
Janthagaaraya. We are told that this is a rare discovery, three
others similar, but not providing as many clues, have been
discovered in Anuradhapura.. For the ruins here show how the
medicinal ingredients were prepared and the likely implements
and utensils used in the preparation of oils and the grinding of
medicinal herbs. There are signs of there having been attached
toilet facilities at this spot and the devices adopted to
prevent the odours from spreading.

Getting back to the peth maga, we gently ascend
this path until we come to the first few steps that have to be
climbed. These steps take you to the caves that abound on the
hill. This first cave you meet, however, is special. It is
where, as popular legend has it, the Arahat Maliyadeva lived,
The cave is fairly prominent with well marked drip ledges, but
unusual in that it had a projecting tiled roof in front
supported by six or seven posts and looking as if it is
sheltering a verandah, Following the marks left by the perished
roof it seems to have been possible to re-erect the ‘verandah,’

There are several other interesting buildings
around this spot where the footpath starts to climb. Of these
the Chankamanagaraya or in popular language sakman maluva -
meditation while walking to and fro - is considered to be of
great importance. For the first time they have found a sakman
maluva with all the appurtenances that they are reputed to have.
There are indications that this sakmn maluva has had a roof
built over it, being the first of its kind discovered in this
country.

Other features of this sakman maluva. include a
50 foot long path over which the roof was constructed and sand
strewn on the path as on the main peth maga. The other
interesting feature of this sakman maluva is that it has
provided attached toilet facilities as revealed by the remains
of a urinal, a squatting plate and a dhoni - a stone basin to
store water for cleaning up after the ablutions are performed.

Close to this meditation centre there is a large
residential building for the monks called the Aramaya and built
on a rock. Round this Aramaya and at a distance of 8 feet from
the building, there used to be a moat filled with water It is
suggested that the water in the moat helped to cool the
atmosphere around this Aramaya, an early example perhaps of the
sustainable use of the environment to provide air-conditioning.
A reception hall had also been constructed close to the Aramaya
and the Maliyadeva cave. Visitors who came to meet any
residential monks, we are given to understand, resorted to this
building to make inquiries. Hence it has been called the
Sammukalena or Samukalena ( literally a meeting place but could
be a reception room). .

The author of Ancient Ceylon, H. Parker, while
replying to the note sent to him by Frederick Lewis, says that
the " tradition regarding the place is that it dates from the
time of Maha Sena or his son Tittha Tissa, (I forget which) and
this is not unlikely as there are other traditions regarding
these two in that part, and an inscription of the son not far
away.

"The ruins with the out-stone work which you
mention were the residences of the superiors of this large
monastic establishment and are all built on the plan of the
‘Pavillions’ so-called at Anuradhapura. There are several of
these ruins at Arankelle - at least 6 or 7. I think there is a
monastery with vihara and dagoba at one end of the Pet-magg."(Parker’s
spelling.)

The then Commissioner of the
Archaeological Department, A.M. Hocart, found an inscription at
Arankelle belonging to the 13th century and he has placed it in
the Anuradhapura museum. He is inclined to think that Arankelle
has a history going back to the 2nd century A.D.

Hitherto, the ‘educated’ natives’ view of our
country’s ruins has followed closely and faithfully the views of
our former imperial rulers. They were patronising without being
offensive and looked on these ‘curious’ beliefs and practices of
the natives with a certain condescension. It’s time, I think, we
dropped this somewhat inglorious colonial inheritance. Our ruins
should not be looked upon as mere museum pieces. Even though in
ruins the Ruwan veli seya was venerated as a holy shrine
throughout history.. .

Today the restored Seya is not only the pride
and glory of this country but also a sacred centre that attracts
tens of thousands of Budhhist pilgrims every year unfailingly.
Likewise the forest monastery of Arankele should be restored not
as a centre for the attraction of tourists, but as a much needed
retreat or.a meditation centre for those who turn away from the
hustle and bustle of our sad, bad and mad world. .I wonder
whether I could persuade the Minister of Cultural Affairs and
the Minister for Buddhist Affairs to think on these lines?

(Some facts in this article were
taken from a publication in Sinhala on Arankele issued in 1990
in commemoration of the 100th anniversary of the founding of the
Department of Archaeology)